Electrolyte for alkaline storage batteries.



' UNITED sTATEsP ENT oFFIo I THOMAfi'A. EDIsoN,-;or LEW LLYN PA K, ORANGE, NEW JERSEY, AssIGNoR TO EDISON STORAGE BATTERY COMPANY, OF WES ORANGE, NEW JERSEY, AcoRPoR mN OF NEW JERSEY.

,ELEGTROLYTE FOR ALKALI E STORAGE BATTERIES.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS AuEnIsoN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Llewellyn Park, Orange, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electrolytes for Alkaline Storage Batteries, of

which the following is a description.

- largely to thedepolarizing has been less than t at'of the iron element,

and the capacity of the nickel element cannot be maintained for so'long a period of. time as the iron element. Furthermore, the nickel hydroxid as an active material, is seriously affected by any other electrode that may bedissolved in the electrolyte, as well as b impurities'which in small traces are inevita ly present in. chem} ical materials when used commercially.

My invention is based on the discovery that the capacity of the'nickel hydroxid can be inaterially increased, while at the same tirrie the capacity will be -maintained for longer periods, by adding tozthe alkaline electrolyte a small proportion of lithium other words for each 100 hydroxid. The electrolyte maybe a solu tion of sodium or potassium hydrate. The preferred amount of lithium hydroxid employed is about 2% c. c. of the solu- A tion, the 'amount of lithium, hydroXid used will 'be. preferably about? grams, but the Specificationof. Letters Patent. I Application filed May 10. 19o7. Serial No. 372.919.

-.hydrate, 21 rams. T

by weight, or in Patented. Jan. 14, 1908.

proportlon may *be varied more -'or less on either side of this quantity.- i The preferable solution when sodium hydrate is used is about 15% and When-.pota ssium' hydrate is used, .about 21 or 1n' other words each 100 c. c. of solution will preferably contain of sodium hydrate 15 rams or of potassium e increase in capacityof an' dison cell in which, lithium \hydroXid is used, amounts'toabout ten per' cent, while the-increase of the time over which the capacity maybe maintained is remarkable, and of the highest commercial importance. .I am not able to' explain whg the ad'ditionof lithium hydroxid as explaine vto the electrolyte, should result insuch-striking. andnoticeable,phenomena.

Havin now described m invention,

.what'I c aim as new therein, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is as follows: iron. from the 1.' An alkaline electrolyte for storage bat: teries, employing lithium hydroxid,v substantially as set forth. 1

' 2. Andalkaline electrolyte for storage batteries, employing sodium or potassium hydrate,.and containing about two per cent. of lithium hydroxid', substantially as set forth.

3. A sto'rage'battery employing as active materials compounds of nickel and iron, and an alkaline electrolyte employing sodium or potassium h drate, and hydroxid, su stantially as set forth.

containing lithium 'This specification signed and witnessed this 8th day of firoMAs A EmsoN Witnesses; I i J n FRANK L. DYER, FRANK- D. Lewis. 

